Watch those legislators

Look out. It's the witching hour, that period during the entire year when legislators finally start doing things. Unfortunately, what they accomplish often suits their needs rather than the public's.

Most notorious of these "accomplishments" in recent years was the pay raise state elected officials voted for themselves in the wee hours just before they left Harrisburg in the summer of 2005. Public outcry over the generous raises forced lawmakers to repeal the bill later that year. Many of them lost their positions in subsequent elections.

But guess what! Just two weeks ago, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that four legislators who lost re-election bids because of the pay raise scandal are back on the state payroll. One, Republican Peter Zug of Lebanon County, is earning $55,000 working for the state Gaming Control Board. Another, Democrat Fred Belardi of Scranton (no doubt a bosom buddy of Senate Democratic Leader Robert Mellow) is making $116,000 to "manage" parking and personnel for his former colleagues in the House. That's more than he made as an elected official. Three others are now lobbyists.

Fun, isn't it? Legislators take care of their own and, when they don't, their friends the lobbyists do. Meanwhile, what are they doing for us?